Guide to Typing Kannada with Optitrans v2

In my opinion, the easiest way to type in Kannada on Linux is using the keyboard Kannada (optitransv2 (m17n)). It’s an ASCII to Kannada transliteration keyboard built on top of ITRANS. It’s much easier to learn and use compared to ITRANS. Just like ITRANS, if you know one of the Indic languages, it works well for others. I have created a guide based on the M17n input method file for my reference. I hope it’s useful for others too. If you find any mistakes, send me an email, and I will fix them. Always send examples.

Install/Enable

In Gnome/KDE it should have been there automatically. But not enabled. To enable, go to settings -> Keyboard – Input settings. Add Kannada (optitransv2 (m17n)).

The “a” vowel is automatic

Most Important Rule: When you type a consonant, it automatically includes the vowel “a” (ಅ). For example:

• k → ಕ (ka, not just k)
• m → ಮ (ma, not just m)

Simple Consonants

k  → ಕ     kh → ಖ     g  → ಗ     gh → ಘ
ch → ಚ     Ch → ಛ     j  → ಜ     jh → ಝ
T  → ಟ     Th → ಠ     D  → ಡ     Dh → ಢ
t  → ತ     th → ಥ     d  → ದ     dh → ಧ
p  → ಪ     ph → ಫ     b  → ಬ     bh → ಭ
y  → ಯ     r  → ರ     l  → ಲ     v  → ವ
sh → ಶ     S  → ಷ     s  → ಸ     h  → ಹ
m  → ಮ     n  → ನ     N  → ಣ

Example

• rama → ರಮ (not ರಮಾ)
• kml → ಕಮಲ (kamala)

Vowels

Independent Vowels (at word beginning)

a   → ಅ        aa/A → ಆ       i   → ಇ            ii/I → ಈ
u   → ಉ      uu/U → ಊ    e   → ಎ           ee/E → ಏ
ai  → ಐ        o   → ಒ          oo/O → ಓ       au  → ಔ

Dependent Vowels (after consonants)

ka  → ಕ (default)    kaa/kA → ಕಾ    ki  → ಕಿ    kii/kI → ಕೀ
ku  → ಕು            kuu/kU → ಕೂ    ke  → ಕೆ    kee/kE → ಕೇ
kai → ಕೈ            ko → ಕೊ       koo/kO → ಕೋ   kau → ಕೌ

Special Features

Double Consonant = Consonant + Virama

Type any consonant twice to get it with a virama (್):

kk → ಕ್     nn → ನ್     tt → ತ್     mm → ಮ್

Examples:

• sikkt → ಸಿಕ್ತ (sikta)
• akki → ಅಕ್ಕಿ (akki – rice)

Shortcut for Nasal Sounds

Use nn before certain consonants to get the correct nasal:

nnk  → ಙ್ಕ     nng  → ಙ್ಗ     nnch → ಞ್ಚ     nnj  → ಞ್ಜ
nnT  → ಣ್ಟ     nnD  → ಣ್ಡ

Examples:

• shnnkr → ಶಙ್ಕರ (Shankara)
• snncit → ಸಞ್ಚಿತ (sanchita)

Numbers

0 → ೦    1 → ೧    2 → ೨    3 → ೩    4 → ೪
5 → ೫    6 → ೬    7 → ೭    8 → ೮    9 → ೯

Special Characters

M   → ಂ   (anusvara)      H   → ಃ  (visarga)      ;   → ್ (virama)
..  → ।  (danda)        .,  → ॥ (double danda)

Common Words – Practice Examples

Basic Words

amma     → ಅಮ್ಮ       (mother)
appa     → ಅಪ್ಪ       (father)
mane     → ಮನೆ        (house)
paani    → ಪಾನಿ       (water)
pustak   → ಪುಸ್ತಕ     (book)

Names

raam     → ರಾಮ        (Rama)
siitaa   → ಸೀತಾ       (Sita)
krishn   → ಕೃಷ್ಣ      (Krishna)
shankar  → ಶಙ್ಕರ      (Shankar)

Phrases

namaste        → ನಮಸ್ತೆ     (greetings)
dhanyavaad     → ಧನ್ಯವಾದ    (thank you)
kshemyaavaa    → ಕ್ಷೇಮ್ಯಾವಾ  (how are you?)

Troubleshooting Tips

Problem: Getting wrong nasal sounds

❌ shankara might give wrong nasal
✅ shnnkara or shnnkr → ಶಙ್ಕರ

Problem: Unwanted shortcuts

If you want ಸಹ instead of ಶ:

• Type saha or sah
• Or use commit key (Ctrl+Shift+Enter) between: s<commit>h
• Or use arrow keys: s<left><right>h

Problem: Need space in compound

For ಶನ್ ಕರೋತಿ instead of ಶಙ್ಕರೋತಿ:

• Type shann karoti (note two spaces)

Step-by-Step Practice

Day 1: Basic Consonants

Practice typing simple words:

• ka, kha, ga, gha
• ma, na, pa, ta
• Simple words: mata, pita, gana

Day 2: Vowel Combinations

• kaa, ki, kii, ku, kuu
• Words: kamal, naari, putr

Day 3: Double Consonants

• kk, tt, nn, mm
• Words: sikkt, atttu, amma

Day 4: Advanced Features

• Nasal shortcuts: nnk, nnch
• Complex words: shnnkr, snncit

Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Don’t add extra ‘a’: Type kam not kama for ಕಮ್
2. Remember case sensitivity: Ch ≠ ch, T ≠ t
3. Use shortcuts: shnnkr is easier than sha~Nkar
4. Double consonants: nn → ನ್, not ನನ್

Quick Reference Card

References

• Almost Everything You Need to Know About Kannada Transliteration
• ITRANS – The “Indian languages TRANSliteration” (ITRANS) is an ASCII transliteration scheme for Indic scripts
• kn-optitransv2.mim – Kannada m17n input file
• OptiTrans – Optimized Transliteration
• OptiTrans V2 – Optimized Transliteration version 2
• M17N – Multilinguilization (m17n) refers to software that supports multiple languages for display and input
• indic_transliteration_py – Python Package to transliterate files, standard input or input strings from the command-line